State profile
Michigan Cost of Living Comparison
Michigan's 2024 price level is 96.217, 3.78% below the national level, and it now costs more than all three of its neighbours after a jump of almost two points in 2024 alone.
Updated
96.217Michigan all-items price level, U.S. = 100 · rank 24 of 51, lowest first
| Measure | Michigan | Georgia | First − second |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-items price level | 96.217 | 96.293 | −0.076 points |
| Rent price level | 82.332 | 88.694 | −6.362 points |
| Home value | $231,600±$642 | $303,300±$1,171 | −$71,700 |
| Two-bedroom gross rent | $1,162±$6 | $1,326±$11 | −$164 |
| Household income | $72,875±$293 | $77,353±$407 | −$4,478 |
| Real estate taxes paid | $2,904±$9 | $2,341±$12 | +$563 |
$4,000 of monthly spending in Michigan scales to $4,003 in Georgia at the 2024 all-items price ratio.
BEA 2024 and ACS 2020–2024; ± marks the Census 90% margin. How to read a gap
Michigan: a 2024 jump and a state-level property tax
Michigan's relative prices barely moved for three years, slipping from 94.431 in 2020 to 93.589 in 2022 and 94.296 in 2023, and then rose to 96.217 in 2024. The net change since 2020 is 1.786 points, nearly all of it in the final year, so older benchmarks may understate today's position.
The categories are evenly balanced. Goods (95.993) rank 15th-lowest and rents (82.332) 23rd, while utilities, at 100.150, and other services, at 100.933, sit almost exactly on the national level. No single line dominates the gap.
Michigan is one of about a dozen jurisdictions where property tax is a meaningful line in state collections. Property tax supplied 7.7% of fiscal 2025 state collections, $311 per resident, alongside general sales (32.3%) and individual income tax (30.7%). Total collections were $40.81 billion, $4,029 per resident, rank 28. Owners paid a median $2,904 a year in real estate taxes overall, rank 21, on homes with a median value of $231,600, rank 39.
Incomes trail the national picture. Michigan slips from 36th on household income to 41st once income per person is adjusted for prices. Renters spend 30.2% of income on gross rent, rank 18, against a two-bedroom median of $1,162.
All three neighbours are cheaper. Wisconsin (94.095) is closest, Indiana (93.329) next, and Ohio (92.774) the cheapest, with rents at 73.012 and a two-bedroom median of $1,063, or $99 a month less. Georgia (96.293) has the nearest price level nationally.
Category price levels in Michigan
| Category | Parity | Rank, low first | vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All items | 96.217 | 24 | 3.78% below |
| Goods | 95.993 | 15 | 4.01% below |
| Housing (rents) | 82.332 | 23 | 17.67% below |
| Utilities | 100.150 | 35 | 0.15% above |
| Other services | 100.933 | 34 | 0.93% above |
| Real income per person, 2017 $ | $53,569 | 41 | U.S. $59,195 |
All items by year: 2020 94.431 · 2021 94.281 · 2022 93.589 · 2023 94.296 · 2024 96.217 (+1.786 since 2020). How to read categories and trends
Monthly housing costs
- Owners with a mortgage
- $1,569±$5 · rank 38, high first
- Owners without a mortgage
- $602±$3 · rank 27
- Renters: gross rent / income
- 30.2%±0.3 · rank 18
Michigan state tax collections, FY2025
$40.81 billion in total, $4,029 per resident. Scope of these figures
| Tax | FY2025 | Share | Per resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual income | $12.52 billion | 30.7% | $1,236 |
| General sales | $13.17 billion | 32.3% | $1,301 |
| Property | $3.15 billion | 7.7% | $311 |
| Motor fuel | $1.63 billion | 4.0% | $161 |
| Other selective sales | $4.37 billion | 10.7% | $432 |
| Corporate income | $3.06 billion | 7.5% | $302 |
| Licenses | $2.43 billion | 5.9% | $240 |
| Severance | $24.0 million | 0.1% | $2 |
| Other taxes | $440.8 million | 1.1% | $44 |
Michigan sales tax
Michigan charges 6% sales tax on the total price of taxable retail sales; residential electricity, natural gas and home heating fuels are taxed at 4%. Cities and other local units of government may not add a sales tax of their own, according to the Department of Treasury.
Michigan beside its neighbours
Before you budget a move
A Michigan purchase comparison should include the anticipated tax assessment after the transaction, rather than assuming the seller’s bill or the statewide tax median will remain your bill. The historical taxes-paid statistic describes existing owner-occupied units and contains no parcel-level exemption or ownership history.
For a Detroit-area, Grand Rapids-area or other destination, compare the proposed lease and actual job location. A household with remote work may make different transport choices from a commuter. Enter the real vehicle, insurance and utility amounts instead of filling those gaps with an unverified statewide average.
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